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CNET Editors' Rating

The GoodThe Asus TS Mini is a convenient storage and backup solution at an affordable price that offers fast performance. It has a lot of peripheral ports to host additional storage.

The BadThe Asus TS Mini takes a long time to set up and doesn't come with many extra features other than what Windows Home Server offers. The server's design makes servicing its internal storage quite a task.

The Bottom LineThe Asus TS Mini is a fast and easy-to-use NAS server for home networking. However, it could be frustrating and time-consuming if you want to service its internal storage.

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At around $270 with 500GB of storage ($400 for 2TB), the dual-bay Asus TS Mini NAS server has a good bang for your buck, especially when considering its really fast throughput performance.

However, like other NAS servers that run Windows Home Server operating system, the TS Mini comes with just a standard set of features that Microsoft bundles within the OS and not much more. It's also hard to get to the server's internal hard drive bay to add or upgrade its storage. To make up for this, the TS Mini comes with a slew of USB and eSATA ports to host external storage devices.

If you are looking for a fast and simple easy-to-use NAS sever, the TS Mini fits the bill. Those who want to get more out of their NAS servers, however, would porabaly want to check out the similarly priced HP MediaSmart EX495 or the slightly more expensive Synology DS209+ NAS server .

Design and setup
Contrary to its name, the TS Mini isn't the most compact dual-bay NAS server we seen. It's actually larger than the Synology DS209+. It's aesthetically pleasing; it's square in shape and has a small footprint when used in its intended vertical position.

Powered by Microsoft's Windows Home Server and Intel's Atom N280 processor running at 1.66Ghz and 2GB of 800Mhz DDR2 system memory, the Asus TS Mini significantly outspecs the Acer Aspire H340. And like other Windows Home Server-based NAS servers, the Asus is very much like a Windows server computer without a keyboard, mouse, or monitor. That said, the server can be controlled from a second computer on the same network via its Windows Home Server Console (for home users) or via remote desktop (for advanced users).

The TS Mini comes with one of its bays occupied by a 500GB hard drive (or 2TB in the more expensive version) that includes the operating system. If you want to expand for more storage or duplicate to protect your data, you'll need at least two physical hard drives. Unfortunately, it's very hard to add a second hard drive or replace the server's original hard drive, as you'll need to literally dismantle the server using a screwdriver. The TS Mini's design does not allow you to easily service its internal storage.

It's a much better idea to add more storage to the NAS server using external hard drives, and the TS Mini can handle a lot of them. The server comes with six USB 2.0 ports and two eSATA ports on the back. This is twice the number of ports found in other dual-bay NAS servers.

Setting up the Asus TS Mini is an easy but time-consuming task. The server comes with three software disks, including the software installation CD. We popped this disk into a network PC and then followed the onscreen instructions. The setup process quickly detected the NAS server in the network and then installed the Windows Home Server Connector software. After that, the automatic setup process kicked in and took almost an hour to finish, during which time we just needed to wait. Once it was done, the Home Server Console software also installed on the PC, and we could use this to manage the server.

The other two disks are the PC restore CD and the server recovery DVD. The first restores a network computer from a backup image stored on the server and the second will recover the server to its factory default status if need be. This set of DVDs is standard for all Windows Home Server-based NAS servers that we've reviewed.

Features
Windows Home Server allows developers to create add-ins to further extend the functionality of the server. Asus bundles two add-ins with the TS Mini: Asus Webstorage WHS Connector and Asus Xtor Manager.

Webstorage allows users to back up selected folders onto Asus' Webstorage cloud service. The TS Mini comes with a one-year subscription for 500GB; after that the service costs $68 per year.

The Xtor Manager, on the other hand, is a nifty application that enables you to sync any folder that's on the NAS server with one that's on an external hard drive. This is a great feature for those who want to keep identical copies of a folder in two places in real time.

We tried these two features out and they worked as intended. Note, however, that Webstorage uses a lot of Internet bandwidth, and you shouldn't back up folders that have more than around 10GB of data.

User account and share folders
Just like any Windows machine, the TS Mini has a standard user management setup. To create a new user, run the Windows Home Server Console and click on the tab called User Accounts. Here, you can create new users just like you would using a Windows computer, with one difference: you have the option of giving the user remote access to the NAS server. Once a user is created, the wizard will display a list of existing share folders that the new user can be given access to. Access privileges include Full (write and read), Read (read only), and None (no access).

Note that though you can create as many user accounts as you'd like, the server only allows for a maximum of 10 concurrent connections.

Creating a new share folder is similar to creating a new user; simply click on the "Share Folder" tab and follow the wizard. Once a new folder has been created, the wizard allows you to assign access to that folder via a list of existing users. An unlimited number of share folders can be created.

CNET editor Dong Ngo has been involved with technology since 2000, starting with testing gadgets and writing code for CNET Labs' benchmarks. He now manages CNET San Francisco Labs, reviews 3D printers, networking/storage devices, and also writes about other topics from online security to new gadgets and how technology impacts the life of people around the world.
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